These easy corn fritters make a wonderful quick breakfast, snack, side, or lunch. They’re made with just a few simple ingredients and can be made ahead of time. Great for meal prep, and can be easily made vegan and gluten-free.
Perfect to be served as an appetizer, a quick lunch, on BBQs, and even for breakfast topped with fried eggs!
We are big fans of corn fritters in my family. We make them very often, and I always keep a bag of frozen corn in my freezer. On days when I have no idea what to cook, these fritters make a speedy snack, breakfast, lunch, or even light but hearty dinner. So this recipe always saves the day!
They’re basically corn cakes that are made from a flavorful batter and sweet corn kernels. They’re gently fried in oil, resulting in crispy exterior, and tender moist centers.
How to Make Corn Fritters
To make corn cakes or fritters you need the following ingredients:
- Corn – I recommend that you use either fresh corn, or canned or frozen corn kernels. If you have a fresh ear of corn, you will get a fresher flavor but to be able to make them all year round I just go for frozen or canned corn.
- Eggs – eggs are important to hold the mixture together, I also tested this recipe with chia eggs and it turned out great. For a chia egg, you need 3 tablespoons of water and 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed.
- Onion – for taste and crunch. I usually go for red onion for color, but you can use yellow or white onion if you prefer.
- Flour, baking powder, spices, and herbs.
- Oil for frying.
The Directions
You will need a food processor to blend the ingredients. I like to blend just half of the corn kernels and leave the other half as a whole as that gives a lovely texture to the fritters.
So to a food processor, add all of the ingredients (and half of the corn kernels), then blend for 10 minutes or until you get a mixture that looks like a chunky batter. It doesn’t need to be super fine.
Then stir in the rest of the corn kernels. If you prefer, you can blend all of the ingredients together at once, but the fritters won’t have much texture.
The mixture/batter will be sticky and that’s ok. Heat oil in a frying pan on medium heat, and using an ice cream/cookie scoop or a 1/4 measuring cup, scoop out the batter onto the frying pan to form the fritters and lightly flat them with a spatula. I usually fry every 3 fritters together at a time.
Fry for 3 minutes on one side, then flip the fritters over and cook for 2 more minutes or until they’re golden brown and look cooked through. Repeat with the remaining batter until you run out.
The idea here to cook the fritters on medium heat to make sure that the fritters are cooked through, as frying on high heat will result in really brown fritters that look done from the outside but they will raw from the inside. And remember, we are using eggs in this recipe so it’s important that the fritters are cooked through.
Try making corn fritters with grilled corn!
Top Tips
- Add spices – To add more flavor, feel free to add any dried herbs or spices that you like. You can add cumin, cayenne, garlic and onion powders, smoked paprika, and even dried parsley. You can also add extra fresh herbs to the mixture such as dill or green onions.
- Only drop the mixture in the pan when the oil is hot – Although these fritters are shallow fried (not deep-fried), the oil needs to be hot when you cook the fritters. This will ensure that the fritters turn out crispy from the outside, soft and tender from the inside. If you drop the mixture into cold oil, the fritters won’t hold their texture.
- Do not fry at very high heat – If the heat is too high, the outside will brown too quickly and that means that the fritters won’t cook through. Don’t forget that there are raw eggs in the mixture, so you need to make sure that the fritters and cooked through.
- Depending on the size of your pan, but I usually fry in batches of 3. If you’re using a smaller pan, fry 2 at a time in a few batches and make sure that your fritters are not touching each other. When frying, gently flatten the fritters with a spatula.
- Once cooked, place on a plate with kitchen towels, or a wire rack to get rid of any excess oil.
- Serve warm or at room temperature with sour cream, or yogurt sauce and a cucumber salad (recipes are in the recipe card below).
Storing Tips
- Make ahead: You can make the corn fritters mixture a day in advance and use it on the next day, this comes very handy if you’re planning to make these fritters for breakfast.
- Fridge: Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Freezer: Cooked corn cakes or fritters can stay in the freezer for up to 3 months. Reheat in your toaster oven or quickly in a pan. If you reheat in the microwave, the fritters will lose their crispiness.
Recommended Tools for This Recipe
- Non-stick frying pan. I like to shallow fry fritters and vegetable cakes on a good quality wide non-stick heavy-bottomed pan, it ensures that the fritters never stick to the pan and they always cook evenly.
- Food processor. This is the food processor that I love and recommend!
- Glass bowl. This is the set that I have and use for everything from baking to cooking.
- Stainless steel measuring spoons. I’ve had this set for so long now, honestly, the quality is amazing and they will last you for ages!
- Turner. Always make sure that the turner that you’re using is heat-resistant!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Corn Fritters
Ingredients
Corn Fritters
- 3 cups (400 grams) (2 ½ cups) frozen corn kernels
- 2 medium (2) eggs
- 1 medium (1) red onion
- 1 cup (120 grams) (1 cup) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon (½ Tsp) baking powder
- 1 teaspoon (½ Tsp) garlic powder
- 3 tablespoons (3 Tbsp) lemon juice
- ⅓ cup (4 Tbsp) cilantro
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon (4 Tbsp) oil vegetable, corn, sunflower, or canola – for frying
Yogurt Sauce
- ½ cup (150 grams) (½ cup) Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon (1 Tbsp) lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon (½ Tsp) garlic powder or granules
- Salt and pepper to taste
Cucumber Parsley Salad with Lemon Dressing
- 1 cup (100 grams) (2 ¼ cup) cucumber sliced
- 2 tablespoons (1 ½ tbsp) chopped fresh parsley
- ⅓ cup (50 grams) (3 tbsp) red onion thinly sliced
Lemon Dressing
- 2 tablespoons (2 Tbsp) olive oil
- 3 tablespoons (3 Tbsp) lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon (1 Tbsp) balsamic vinegar
- ½ teaspoon (½ Tsp) dried parsley
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Make Corn Fritters
- If using frozen corn, no need to thaw as these can directly go in the batter. Place fresh or frozen corn kernels in a glass bowl.
- Place half of the corn in the food processor jug with the rest of the ingredients, and blend to get a coarse mixture.
- Transfer the mixture to the bowl with the rest of the corn, and mix it with a spatula so that the corn kernels are mixed in with the blended mixture (do not overmix the mixture).
- Heat the oil in a pan or a cast-iron skillet on medium heat. When the oil is hot, using a cookie scoop, drop the fritter mixture onto the skillet and lightly flatten with a spatula or the back of a spoon.
- Add 2 more scoops of fritter mixture at a time, slightly spaced. Cook the fritter on medium heat for around 3 minutes or until the bottom is golden brown, then flip over and cook for 2 more minutes. Or until corn fritters are golden brown and cooked through. If using frozen corn, it might take 1-2 minutes longer.
- Repeat the process 2 more times until all the corn fritter mixture is used up.
For the yogurt sauce
- Add all the ingredients in small bowl and stir well to combine.
For the cucumber salad
- In a small bowl, whisk together all the ingredients for the lemon dressing.
- In a large bowl, add cucumber, parsley, red onions, and lemon dressing. Gently toss to combine.
To serve
- Divide corn fritters and cucumber parsley salad between the plates/bowls. Spoon the yogurt sauce on the corn fritters or use it as a dip.
Notes:
- You can use fresh, frozen, or canned (drained) sweet corn kernels to make the fritters.
- Add spices – To add more flavor, feel free to add any dried herbs or spices that you like. You can add cumin, cayenne, garlic and onion powders, smoked paprika, and even dried parsley.
- Only drop the mixture in the pan when the oil is hot – Although these fritters are shallow fried (not deep-fried), the oil needs to be hot when you cook the fritters. This will ensure that the fritters turn out crispy from the outside, soft and tender from the inside. If you drop the mixture into cold oil, the fritters won’t hold their texture.
- Do not fry at very high heat – If the heat is too high, the outside will brown too quickly and that means that the fritters won’t cook through. Don’t forget that there are raw eggs in the mixture, so you need to make sure that the fritters and cooked through.
- Depending on the size of your pan, but I usually fry in batches of 3. If you’re using a smaller pan, fry 2 at a time in a few batches and make sure that your fritters are not touching each other. When frying, gently flatten the fritters with a spatula.
- Serve warm or at room temperature with sour cream, or yogurt sauce and a cucumber salad (recipes are in the recipe card below).
Video
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
Traci says
Omgosh these look so good…I’m wishing they were on my dinner table tonight! I’ll have to pin and save for later…because I do want to come back to these beauties! Thanks for the inspiration 🙂
Quinn Caudill says
These corn fritters sound healthy and delicious. They would make a perfect lunch and your pics are great!
Ben Myhre says
I have not made these, but they look SO SO good. I am going to have to give these a try.
Christina Shoemaker says
Oh my, these corn fritters look fantastic! So flavorful and colorful and delicious! I really love the addition of that yogurt sauce!
Andrea @ Cooking with Mamma C says
I haven’t had corn fritters since I was a kid! I’m really craving them now. Your yogurt sauce looks like the perfect accompaniment.